


A Diamond Studded Christmas

by Probably_Not_Batman



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Christmas fic, Confused Eridan, Fluff, Gift Giving, Multi, Pale Romance | Moirallegiance, Polyamorous Morails, Presents, Trees, decorations
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-27
Updated: 2017-12-27
Packaged: 2019-02-22 12:17:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,361
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13166751
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Probably_Not_Batman/pseuds/Probably_Not_Batman
Summary: It's been a few years since the players were revived, but only a handful of months since Eridan was pulled back to society by Roxy. He's finally comfortable in the house, but with a new holiday popping up he still has a lot to learn about the planet he woke up on.(A cute Chrismas Fic)





	A Diamond Studded Christmas

**Author's Note:**

> I was struck with idea for this on Christmas, so apologies for it missing the mark by a couple of days. Still, I hope you enjoy!

Eridan grimaced at the parcels in his hands, his fins flicking down as he turned his narrowed eyes to the rest of the room. The living room was brighter than even during the day, the large tree across the space from him wrapped trunk to tip with glittering lights in every color he could imagine.

 

…

_A little under a month ago._

 

Jake burst into the house, bouncing into the kitchen while Eridan was still on his first cup of coffee. He didn’t understand how the other could be so…energetic in the mornings but the months had made him almost used to it. Almost. Still, he couldn’t help the barely audible irritated hiss that escaped him as the other slammed his hands onto the counter with a wide grin.

“Jane! I found the perfect one!” he crowed, practically bouncing in place.

Jane stood at the stove, flipping pancakes. She looked over at Jake as she slid the first plate to Eridan, Dirk and Roxy slipping by Jake to sit, coaxed from sleep by the smell of breakfast cooking. Eridan handed both of them mugs of coffee, finishing his and refilling while he was by the pot. The Crocker tilted her head a little, but grinned. “That’s fantastic! And you’re sure it’ll fit this year?”

Jake huffed slightly, scratching the back of his neck and glancing away. “Of course, I am, Jane. I just miscalculated a little last year. Besides, I was close!”

“We couldn’t even get a star on it!” Jane handed out the last of the plates and sat down with her own. “But that’s why we’re all going to get it this time.”

Eridan was more than a little confused, but too tired to ask. After breakfast, he found himself bundled up in a thick jacket with a pair of white earmuffs over his fins and his scarf covering most of his face against the cold as the group trudged through the heavily wooded area near their house. As much as he’d grown to enjoy life on this planet, one thing he would never get used to was the cold.

Trolls didn’t generate much body heat as it was, especially those higher on the spectrum, so even the slightest chill made Eridan shiver. Roxy had given him the earmuffs to protect his fins when the cold set in, and the pocket warmers tucked into his jacket helped, but Eridan still couldn’t wait to get back inside. He grumbled to himself as they stopped in front of a tree that stood about a foot taller than the tallest of their team.

“See, Jane! It’s perfect!” Jake crowed, throwing his hands out toward the tree, and turning to the rest of them. “You can’t tell me you don’t see it, chaps.”

Eridan furrowed his brow, pulling down his scarf to bare his teeth and grimacing at the visible breath in front of him. “You mean to tell me that I’m freezing my fins off, so w-we can look at a tree?” he half hissed, his fins trying to flap with irritation but only managing to wiggle under the earmuffs. He stiffened when the others looked at him, pulling the scarf over his quickly numbing nose again.

“How else are we gonna get the Christmas tree, Eri?” Roxy laughed, hooking an arm around his shoulders. He grimaced on principle, but leaned against the warmth provided by the contact.

“The w-what?” His voice was muffled by the yarn, but Roxy blinked at him with confusion, indicating she’d heard him.

“The Christmas tree? I know you didn’t celebrate that kinda jazz on Alternia under Fishbitch, but we’ve been on Earth C for years! Didn’t ya have any holiday stuff last year?”

“W-well, I’v-ve heard of it obv-viously!” He said, his cheeks flushing violet. “But it ain’t like I w-was around anyone last w-winter.” His voice fell slightly as he remembered the dreary sea cave he’d tucked himself into as soon as he arrived on this planet. The way Roxy’s eyes tightened let him know she was remembering it too.

Of course, she wrapped both arms firmly around him, ducking her head to tuck it under his chin. “Then I’m gonna make sure this is the best Christmas ever!” she declared, ignoring his halfhearted squirming until he accepted the hug.

“Ya don’t gotta w-worry about that, Rox,” he mumbled. “It’s not a big deal.”

“Nonsense!” Jane added and Eridan remembered with a blush that the others were there. Although most humans acted pretty pale towards everyone, and all of them were in some mess of a moraillgence, he still felt a little embarrassed by the shameless affection they seemed to have no problem showing. Roxy would often grab his hand or pull him into sudden unexpected hugs. Jake would hook his arm through Eridan’s and tug him towards whatever adventure they had for this week. Jane would flick his forehead when he got moody or outright pap him, though he knew papping didn’t mean the same for humans. Dirk was the least outwardly affectionate, though even he didn’t have a problem plopping onto the couch beside Eridan and throwing an arm around his shoulders. So he shouldn’t have been surprised, when the others joined into a group hug, Jane stretching to put her chin on his shoulder, Jake wrapping his arms around the three of them as best he could, and Dirk presumably rolling eyes at the display before standing across from Jake and completing the circle around Eridan. He felt like his face was going to burn off, but sighed and tilted his head to rest on Dirk’s shoulder with only a tiny pout.

“Really, guys,” he quietly insisted. “It’s not a big deal.”

“Sorry, but I hafta agree with the ladies,” Jake piped up. “It’s your first real Christmas, after all! We’ll have a hell of a celebration, won’t we!”

Eridan glanced at Dirk, sure that he’d be the only one against some big thing. Instead, he was met with a smirk from the Strider.

He huffed and waited for them to let go, grimacing a little at the dissipating warmth and a little glad Roxy kept an arm around him. “I still don’t get w-what any a this has to do w-with a tree.”

The Lalonde chuckled, adjusting her hat. It was a bright pink that matched her eyes and her text, with a pair of cat ears poking up on top and a face stitched into the front. He’d found the hat and its matching scarf at a small shop in the town closest to their house and given it to her for her wriggling day earlier that month. “Well, at Christmas we get a big tree and decorate it with lights and ornaments and put presents for everyone under it.”

His fins perked, and his head tilted. “Presents?”

She nodded, glancing back to where everyone else was fussing with the tree. “I guess Jake forgot the axe, again.”

Eridan raised an eyebrow and Roxy shrugged. “None of our powers are exactly made for downing trees and Dirk’s katanas aren’t really lumberjack material.” She turned back to the others, planting her hands on her hips as they argued over who would go back for the axe.

He pulled his wand from its place in his sylladex, looking at the smooth white surface with a frown. He didn’t use his powers much, preferring the rifles he practiced firing with Roxy if he needed to fight at all. The others worried about it, though they didn’t say anything about it when he refused to touch his former weapons, begging Roxy to lock them up when he woke up in a cold sweat with the name of an old friend on his tongue. It was only recently that he’d began cautiously carrying the wand again. It was small, identical to the one he’d had on the meteor. He flinched against a flash of memory, forcing himself to take a deep breath. He wasn’t the same troll anymore. He was still angry sometimes, and he still lashed out occasionally, but he had Roxy and Jane and Dirk and Jake. They were good for him, they kept him grounded, they would keep him from exploding again.

The end of the wand glowed a faint white, feathers dancing faintly in the light of hope. The strand twisted in the air before darting towards the trunk of the tree. He frowned, concentrating on directing it to wrap around the wood. The light obeyed him, pulling tight. With a bright flash and a loud crack the tree came free, toppling toward the ground. Eridan realized he might not have thought this through completely as the tall spruce began falling towards him.

“ERIDAN!” He felt a hand wrap around his arm and yank him out of the way. He stumbled and fell into the snow, shivering as the cold soaked into his pants. Roxy was still holding onto his arm and Dirk took the other to help him up. “What were you thinking?”

Eridan’s shoulders hunched, his fins trying to fold down. “I got the tree cut dow-wn didn’t I?”

She sighed and pressed her palms to his cheeks, squishing his face. “That ain’t the point and you know it, Eri. Just be more careful, kay?”

He grumbled something, but she only laughed in response and patted his cheeks before letting him go.

“Well, it saved some time,” Dirk said, resting his elbow on Eridan’s shoulder.

Roxy rolled her eyes, but the brightness in her eyes didn’t dull at all. “Don’t encourage him. Let’s get this tree home!”

It was too big to fit in any of their sylladex’s, but Jake popped a few ropes from his own to wind around the tree so they could drag it home. Between the five of them it was relatively easy, but by the time they reached the house Eridan’s fingers were stiff with cold and his gills were aching under the scarf. He really hated the cold.

As Dirk and Jake moved the tree into place, Eridan disappeared into his room and changed into a thick sweater and a pair of warm leggings with fuzzy socks and a new scarf draped around his neck. He made a fresh pot of coffee and curled onto the couch with his hot mug and willed his shivering to stop. A weight around his shoulders startled him, but when he looked behind him he just saw Jane draping a blanket around his shoulders. It was warm and he’d be willing to bet she’d thrown it into the dryer for a few minutes.

Roxy came bounding down the stairs with a few boxes balanced in her arms, but as soon as Jane brandished a tray of hot chocolate she dropped them in favor of a mug.

“Roxy, be careful with those!” Jane scolded halfheartedly, setting the tray on the coffee table. When she sat down, Eridan lifted the blanket and she happily tucked herself against his side. Of course, that just was an invitation for everyone to attempt to squeeze under the blanket. Eridan ended up in the middle, between Jane and Roxy. Jake sat on the other side of Jane, his arm over the back of the couch. Dirk had spread his legs over Roxy and Eridan’s laps, and the blanket ended up over all their laps. Eridan set his empty mug of coffee down and picked up the hot chocolate, his rings clinking against the ceramic. There were colorful marshmallows floating  on the surface, already starting to melt together. It was a little sweeter than anything Eridan normally drank, but still pleasant.

“Eridan.” One fin perked, indicating he’d heard Dirk call his name.

“You said you hadn’t been a part of any Christmas stuff before?”

The seadweller took a gulp of his hot chocolate. “I’v-ve heard of it but I w-wasn’t really…social at the time so I don’t really know-w any a the details.”

“So…what you’re saying is you’ve never seen any Christmas movies?”

The confused look Eridan gave him must have said enough, because Jake vaulted himself over the arm of the couch and raced to his room, coming back with an armful of DVDs and a wide grin. “I like the way you think, Strider! Only trouble is pickin which one of these beaut’s to watch first!”

“AW YEAH, DI-STRI!” Roxy hollered, throwing a hand in the air and giving the other a high five. “MOVIE MARATHON!”

Eridan sighed, but didn’t argue. He just sat back as the screen flared to life and wondered what he’d gotten himself into.

 

…

 

Eridan stepped lightly across the room, his sock-clad feet almost silent against the hardwood. There was already a stack of brightly colored presents arranged beneath the tree and even from here he could see the names written on the tags. Jake’s almost illegible scrawl, Roxy’s uneven lettering, Dirk’s deliberate lines, and Jane’s neat cursive. The stocking’s that had been hung the previous week bore the same colors, the same handwriting since Jane insisted that they all had to put their own names on their stocking. Eridan’s was a loopy, fanciful script that looked elegant swooping across parchment but silly and smudged in fabric paint on the white felt that lined the sock. Still, his pusher warmed looking at it.

He stumbled over his own feet, blaming himself for getting distracted. Though he caught himself, his shoulder nudged the tree and one of the precariously placed ornaments toppled to the ground. The sound made him freeze, his fins perked for the slightest noise, the tiniest hint that he’d woken any of his housemates. After a few moments he let out a breath of relief and bent to pick up the plastic figure. It was a large man in a red suit, a puffy beard surrounding a wide smile. A sack was slung over his shoulder, presents spilling from the top. Eridan sighed, hanging it back in place.

 

…

_Two weeks ago_

“W-what’s the deal w-with this Santa guy anyw-way?”

Roxy looked up from the bowl she was holding, mixing dough with Jane as the other prepared more cookies than Eridan thought any of them could eat. “Whatcha mean, Eri?”

“I _mean_ w-who is he? I thought he w-was just a character in those mov-vies you made me w-watch, but the telev-vision just said he w-was gonna be at the mall!”

Her eyes were wide and after a moment she snickered. Eridan felt his cheeks heating slightly, frowning. “W-what?”

“Eri, Eri sit down,” she said, slapping the space beside her. He slipped into the chair and a bowl was shoved into his hands by Jane. It looked like he’d be here a while.

“Okay, I’m sittin.”

“Well, it’s pretty much like in the movies. He’s this jolly old dude who brings presents to all the good kids on Christmas Eve. He watches everyone all year and decides who’s been naughty or nice.”

Eridan’s fins folded down, his shoulders tensing and his pupils narrowing to slits. “He w-what? He can do that?”

“Yeah! How else is he supposed to decide who gets presents? Most kids send him letters telling him what they want but he knows even if they don’t.”

His fins were still pressed tightly against his head, his hand no longer stirring until Jane reminded him to. The thought of someone watching him, judging him from some unknown frozen plane was enough to make his chest hurt. “And w-what about the people w-who don’t get presents?”

“Well, Santa just leaves coal for them,” she shrugged.

Eridan couldn’t shrug off his discomfort and by the end of the day he was knocking on Roxy’s door. It fell open and he stepped inside, his claws kneading into the end of his scarf. “Rox?”

She was curled up in a mass of blankets at the head of her bed, a magazine spread in front of her and a small black kitten curled in her arms. She looked up, closing the magazine and grinning at him. “What’s up, Eri?”

When he sat anxiously at the end of her bed, fiddling with his rings, her expression turned to confusion. She shed the blankets, shuffling forward to put a hand on his shoulder. The kitten climbed into his lap, shoving its head under his hand until he began petting it.

“What’s wrong?”

His fangs worried the inside of his lip for another moment until he finally spoke. “Do you think I’m…good?”

She scrunched up her nose in confusion. “Huh? Of course, Eri. Why wouldn’t I?”

“W-well…I mean I get mad easy still, and I don’t alw-ways listen, and I punched Jake that one time-“

“Yeah, but those things don’t make you _bad_ ,” she said, her arms crossing. “And you apologized to Jake. What’s this about?”

He scooped the cat into his arms, pulling his knees to his chest and muttering something.

Roxy leaned closer. “What was that?”

“I don’t normally care w-what people think a me, at least if they’re judgin me, but I know-w all of you are good people and are gonna get presents and it’s gonna look pretty shitty if all I end up w-with is coal!” He said it quickly, petting the cats head until it squirmed away from him and hopped off the bed.

Roxy stared at him for a long moment before bursting into laughter.

His face went a deep violet and his fins flared. “This ain’t funny, Rox! I know-w I ain’t gonna end up on anyone’s nice list.”

“Eri- Eri please,” she snorted, reaching up a hand and papping his face. He huffed, waiting for her to catch her breath. She caught sight of his distressed expression and leaned against his shoulder. “You’re serious?”

“W-why w-wouldn’t I be?”

She snickered again. “Eri, Eri I’m gonna tell you somethin real serious, okay?”

He nodded.

“You sure?”

“Rox just tell me already!”

She leaned over and whispered, “Santa isn’t real.”

Eridan blinked. “W-what are ya talkin about ? You just told me about him!”

“He’s just a story, Eri,” she chuckled. “Somethin from the old Earth that parents used to tell kids about to encourage them being good. A lot of old traditions from Earth and Alternia transferred over to here. Santa happened to be one of the ones from Earth. Don’t you have any stories for holidays on Alternia?”

Eridan tilted his head, his fins flapping. “Maybe among the Lowbloods. Most Highbloods didn’t really celebrate twelfth perigees eve. Partially because getting a carcass to decorate was harder for seadwellers and we didn’t really need to scare anyone off anyway.”

Roxy blinked at him. “I’m gonna need to hear all about that stuff sometime.”

He shrugged. “If you w-want. So…” he tugged at his scarf. “Santa’s just a story?”

She nodded, grinning and pressing a kiss to his cheek. “Yup! You don’t have anythin to worry about, Eri. You’ll get lots of presents!”

Eridan sighed in relief, sagging against her. She chuckled at him, petting his hair. He yawned, dozing against her shoulder until Jane called them to dinner.

 

…

 

Eridan set the presents under the tree, giving the little boxes one last glance before turning and sneaking back up the stairs. Picking the presents had been the hardest part, making sure everything was perfect. It wasn’t a matter of money, since the players, even the revived ones, had received a hefty amount from the game. It was just that he second guessed almost all his choices. He could only hope that they enjoyed his final choice.

The next morning, he was woken by Roxy dragging him out of bed. He could smell breakfast cooking, but it wasn’t the kitchen which the blonde pulled him towards. Jake and Dirk sat beside the tree, knees tucked under them.

Jane appeared after a few minutes, smiling and ushering Eridan and Roxy into place around the tree. “Breakfast is done and covered,” she announced, smiling at everyone.

Roxy cheered. “But first…PRESENTS.”

Dirk and Eridan were on opposite sides of the semicircle, closest to the tree, so they were the ones tasked with passing the gifts from the stacks. Eridan picked up the four he’d tucked under the tree last night and handed them hesitantly out. Once everyone had four parcels sitting in their laps they began opening them. Eridan used his claws to slice carefully through the tape and fold open the first parcel. The wrapping paper had little cartoon cat heads wearing Santa hats, surrounded by script that read ‘Meowy Christmas’ and even without the tag he would assume it was from Roxy.

It was a thick black scarf made of soft yarn with his sign stitched in violet on either end. Beneath that was a matching hat with holes for his horns with flaps hanging on either side to cover his fins. The flaps on the hat bore his sign as well. He pulled the hat on, only taking a moment to work around his horns. “Thanks, Rox,” he said, draping the scarf around his neck.

“It looks great on ya, Eri!” she replied, giving him two thumbs up.

He picked up the next box, this one from Dirk. The paper covering it was a metallic silver, the  colorful lights glinting off it. He opened it just as carefully, raising an eyebrow at the pair of glasses inside that looked almost identical to his current ones. He put them on, blinking when his chumroll popped onto the screen.

“You keep forgetting your phone,” Dirk explained before he could even ask. “We have to be able to get ahold of you. Plus, it makes things easier.”

Eridan rolled his eyes, but left the glasses on. “Thanks. I had somethin kinda like these in-“ he cut off, grimacing but luckily no on questioned him. They understood.

The third box was from Jane, and Eridan realized with a sigh that the entire thing was wrapped in duct tape. Several layers of duct tape. He couldn’t help a small glare but at least he had his claws to get through it, while he saw the others picking at the edges and unwrapping bit by bit.

In the box sat a mug with a cartoon fish with a top hat on the side, the word ‘SOFISHTICATED’ emblazoned over the image. Eridan groaned at the pun, but knew he’d be drinking coffee out of it over breakfast. Glancing around, it looked like everyone got similarly corny mugs.

Jake’s was last in his stack, the paper a shimmery green around the small box. Inside was a thin leather cord. At the end of it hung a few wooden beads and a rather large fang. Eridan recognized it as a tooth from one of the beasts that had attacked them on the last exploration Jake had dragged him on. He still had a scar on his forearm, but it was a pleasant memory nonetheless. He hung it around his neck and glanced over to see Jake opening the gift from him. His fins folded down but before Jake could open the lid, Roxy squealed.

“OMG ERI!” She held the tiny box close to her face, a gold shimmer shining from black velvet. Jake looked over before opening his own box, his eyes widening. Dirk quirked an eyebrow and opened his own, followed by Jane.

“Oh my gosh,” Jane said, plucking the item from the box.

“Golly, Eridan,” Jake added, looking at it closer.

Dirk glanced at him, but there was a small smile on his face.

Roxy thrust her hand into the center, followed by the others. On a digit, each of them had a gold band that matched one Eridan wore on his left hand. Set into the metal of his was a violet gem in the shape of a diamond. He’d gotten it a few months ago, after things became more official. A morail ring. He knew rings were a big deal in human relationships, and since humans normally only had matesprites he didn’t know how this would go over.

Their bands held similarly shaped gems, though in different colors. Blue, pink, orange, green. Seeing them on the hands of those closest to him was different than seeing them in their boxes and he felt heat in his eyes.

He hadn’t known if they would wear them.

He felt arms around him and for once didn’t complain.

 

…

_A few months later_

Eridan curled on the couch with a book on his lap. It was getting warmer, so he no longer wore the hat Rox had gotten for him, but it was sitting neatly on his desk. The scarf hung around his neck still, although it was warm enough for him to wear short sleeves. He only wore them around the house, but at the moment he was in a loose shirt that was more for comfort than anything else. He’d gotten used to the glasses, keeping the chats minimized mostly. Hanging against his chest was the fang, which he kept polished, and in his hands was the mug.

When Jane called them for dinner, he marked his place and set the book on the coffee table. In the kitchen, Roxy was helping Jane set the table with a smile. Dangling from a thin chain on Jane’s neck was a thin gold band. She normally wore it on her finger, but put it on the chain while cooking so she didn’t lose it. Roxy’s shone from her hand, as did Jake’s when he stepped into the room. Dirk wasn’t really a ring person, but wore it on the same leather cord as the tooth Jake had given him, one from their adventures together.

Eridan couldn’t help the warmth he felt when he caught a glint of their rings. He ran a finger over his own, smiling softly to himself until the plate landing in front of him snapped him out of it. He ate dinner with the others, curling on the couch with them after the meal. His chest was full and warm and as he lounged across Dirk’s chest with Roxy’s feet in his lap, he was quite sure of one thing.

He finally understood the concept of a family.


End file.
